A Week at the Shore
by CrossChord
Summary: Team RWBY is in desperate need of a vacation and the opportunity presents itself in the form of a week at the Atlas coast. Weiss invites her sister along, knowing she needs some much needed R&R, and an unexpected guest shows up. Takes place a year or two after "The Battle for Beacon."
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Because I'm apparently not writing enough QroWin fics, a friend and I had a "what if team RWBY went to the beach and invited Winter and Qrow?" discussion. The idea would not leave my head, so here we are.

This fic is not connected with my other one, "Reunion." The two are completely separate. As it says in the summary, this takes place a year or two after the last episode of Season 3 of RWBY. I try not to speculate on what might happen in the series, so a few liberties will be taken (this is fanfiction after all).

This is also my first time writing team RWBY, so bear with me a bit as I try and find their voices. I hope you enjoy this fic as much as my others!

* * *

"Winter! There you are!"

Not for the first time, and certainly not for the last time, Winter wondered why she accepted her sister's invitation to join her and her teammates at the beach.

In a rare act of generosity, the Schnee family patriarch allowed Weiss to invite her friends to stay at the family beach house on Atlas' coastline. Luckily for Winter, the beach house had limited rooms, so she opted to stay at a nearby hotel for the week. With school out for the summer, and Winter on a rare leave from her military duties, it was the perfect opportunity to see her sister.

As she carefully made her way across the hot sand and through the clusters of beach goers, Winter spotted her sister waving at her in an attempt to get her attention.

Adjusting her large sun hat and sunglasses, Winter finally caught up to her sister, glad that the house they were staying in had a private beach area. She could finally relax a bit, now that she was away from the crowds and noise. Normally Winter didn't spend much time at the coast for, as her name implied, she preferred cooler weather. But, she hardly got the chance to spend a lot of time with her sister, and if that meant spending time with Weiss' teammates as well, then so be it.

"Hello Weiss." Winter gave her sister a smile, set her bag down, and leaned in to give her a hug. "Are you enjoying yourself?"

"Oh yes! I'm so glad you could make it!" Weiss returned the hug, glad to see Winter again. "My friends will also be glad to see you. We have so much planned!"

Winter crossed her arms over her chest and looked down at Weiss. "I hope all of your time won't be spent in idle activities. This will be the perfect time for me to work with all of you. I know you've learned a lot in the past two years, but all of you still have a ways to go."

"Training?" Winter turned to see Weiss' friend and teammate Ruby standing next to them. "But we're on vacation! We're supposed to be having fun and relaxing!"

Winter looked at the younger girl over her sunglasses and raised an eyebrow. "When you become a huntress you will not have much time for resting and vacations."

"But this is why we need to do it now!"

Winter sighed. "I promise I will not work with all of you the entire time. However, a change in scenery gives you the perfect opportunity to train on a new terrain."

Ruby groaned. "Oh fine. Uncle Qrow can help us out when he gets here."

"Qrow?" Winter blinked, wondering if she heard Ruby correctly. "What do you mean, 'when he gets here?'"

"Oh yeah! Uncle Qrow said he had some business here in Atlas, so he would come see us when he was done," Yang said, joining in on the conversation. "He can help us out with our training."

Winter swallowed at the mention of Qrow, her heart speeding up just a bit. It had been at least six months since she had last seen the man, and was curious as to how he would react upon seeing her.

"Y-yes," Winter stammered, her throat suddenly dry. "Qrow is an experienced huntsman, so he will make an excellent sparring partner."

"Just make sure you don't tear up the beach this time. Glynda isn't here to put it back together again," Ruby pointed out, giving her a smile.

Winter sighed and picked up her bag. "Just make sure your uncle doesn't antagonize me again, and I will be fine."

Walking next to her, Weiss accompanied Winter to the area where the other girls set up their chairs and towels. "Winter? Are you all right? You got kind of pale all of a sudden."

Shaking her head a bit to clear it, Winter gave her a small smile. "I'm fine. I have a lot of things on my mind at the moment." She glanced around and spotted an empty beach chair next to a dark-haired girl with her nose buried in a book, a large umbrella covering the area. Winter placed her bag next to it and removed her hat as she sat down, then pulled her own book out.

With a shrug, Weiss walked off to join Ruby and Yang on their errand to the local grocery store. If Winter didn't want to tell her what was wrong, then fine. Weiss figured she could pry it out of her later on anyway.

The words on the smooth white pages blended together as Winter attempted to make sense of the book she was reading. The idea of seeing Qrow again made her nervous, and her thoughts soon turned to the last time they parted ways.

* * *

 _"Six months?! What the hell mission has you gone for six months?!"_

 _"It's classified."_

 _Annoyed at her response, Qrow ran a hand through his hair and turned away from Winter, not wanting to look at her. "Will I be able to see you during that time?"_

 _Winter was quiet for a moment before she answered. "No. My location is classified. I can't even tell my family where I will be."_

 _Qrow let out a sharp exhale at her response and turned around again, eyes flashing. "These damn missions of yours keep getting longer and longer. You need a life outside the military Winter."_

 _"The military is my life." Winter glared at Qrow, a hand at her side clenched into a fist. "Like how being a huntsman is your life. You don't hear me complaining about how often you're gone."_

 _"At least I try to see you! Everything you do is 'classified this' and 'classified that!'" Qrow yelled, throwing his arms up in frustration. Taking a few steps away from her, he brought a hand up to his head and rubbed at his temples. "Maybe this isn't going to work out."_

 _Biting her lip, Winter looked down at the floor, not wanting him to see the sadness in her eyes. "If that is what you want, then so be it."_

 _Qrow's eyes grew wide at her reply, as if he expected her to disagree with him. Without saying another word, he turned on a heel and stalked out of her apartment, slamming the door behind him._

* * *

"Blaaaaaaaaaaake!" Winter jumped a bit at the sound of Ruby's voice calling out her friend's name. A drink bottle flew past her nose and was caught by her neighbor without even looking up from her book. A moment later, three sets of feet came running up to them, a small spray of sand showering her when they stopped. "Sorry Winter, didn't see you there."

"Be careful where you..." Winter's voice trailed off when she looked up to scold Ruby and froze when she spotted the figure walking up behind the girls. Her hands suddenly started to tremble a bit and she felt her face grow hot at the sight of the newcomer. Weiss and Yang exchanged an amused look, but Winter was too busy staring at Qrow to notice.

"Long time no see, Ice Queen."


	2. Chapter 2

" _Long time no see, Ice Queen."_

On the outside, Qrow managed to keep up his cool and cocky demeanor. But upon seeing Winter for the first time in six months, wearing only a blue bikini and matching sarong, her hair pulled into a high ponytail, his insides twisted a bit and his mouth felt dry as he tried to maintain his composure. He tried not to let his eyes wander over the exposed skin of her slim body, but it was difficult.

 _Dammit. Stay calm._

Their fight had been stupid, he could admit that to himself at least. But he was so fucking tired of Winter putting her job above everything else. Above her health, her personal life….

Above him.

He didn't want her to give up the military or anything like that. Qrow knew that was ridiculous. But he wanted her to try and spend more time with him, make an effort to carve some free time out of her schedule.

When they had their discussion, Qrow never expected her to agree with him and part ways. Hell, he was hoping she would fight for him, convince him that she wanted him for more than just sex. He didn't want a relationship, per se, but he wanted something more than just meeting in some hotel room in whatever city they happened to be in and engaging in mindless fucking.

Two weeks ago Ruby had called and told him about Weiss' father letting them all use the beach house and that he should come by and say hi. Qrow loved his nieces but he wasn't sure about hanging out with a bunch of teenagers. But he remembered he had business with Ironwood that week, so he could swing by and see Ruby and Yang before heading back to Signal to prepare for the new school year.

However, they neglected to mention that the elder of the two Schnee sisters would be at the house as well. It made sense, seeing at it belonged to her family. But still, if Qrow had known…

 _Admit it, you would've gone anyway._

Qrow pushed aside his thoughts and realized Ruby was talking to him.

"Hey Uncle Qrow, we're going to grab dinner. You want to come with us?"

He dragged his eyes away from Winter's and looked down at his younger niece, giving her a grin. "Nah kid, go with your friends. Us adults are gonna sit here and have a chat."

Yang placed her hands behind her head and smirked. "You sure you two don't need a chaperone?"

"Even if we did, you think you'd want to be around to see what we might get up to?"

Yang scrunched her nose and shook her head, her mass of blonde hair falling over her shoulders. "Ew, no thanks."

Qrow sauntered over to the chair Blake recently evacuated and plopped down into it, stretching his long legs out in front of him. "Then go away."

The girls started chattering to each other as they walked off, making plans for later that night. As soon as they were out of earshot, Qrow turned to Winter to speak to her. "So…."

To his surprise, Winter suddenly stood, slamming her book shut. "It's getting late. I should go back to my hotel."

Scrambling to his feet, Qrow grabbed her wrist, stopping her before she could pick up her bag and walk off. Unable to escape from his hard grip, Winter slowly turned and looked him in the eye. Qrow's own eyes widened as he saw anger and….he could have sworn sorrow in her blue ones. Unable to stop himself, he had to ask the one thing he was thinking when he first saw her sitting in that beach chair.

"I see you're able to make time to hang out with your sister and her friends, but you can't bother to take a week off to spend time with me?"

Winter's anger flared up and without warning, she swung out with her free hand in an attempt to punch him in the face. Instead, Qrow deflected the blow and now held her other hand in his grasp. "I will have you know, _Qrow,_ " Winter replied through gritted teeth, "I have not seen Weiss in quite some time. But if I had known you would be here, I would have turned down her offer and stayed at the office. Besides, as I recall, _you_ are the one who broke up with me."

Qrow glared back at Winter, wanting so badly to take her in his arms and hold her. But now that the floodgates were open, there was no stopping him. "Because I was tired of being someone you call only when you need to get laid, _Ice Queen_." He pulled her closer and pinned her arms behind her back, ignoring her struggle. "Then again, who else would you call when you needed someone to screw you at midnight? Ironwood?"

Winter gave up her attempt to escape and pressed her lips together until they formed a straight line, her anger at Qrow intensifying. "How _dare_ you insinuate General Ironwood and I are…. I would _never_ ….. He is my _superior officer_!"

Qrow laughed at Winter's protestations then grew serious when she quieted. Qrow wasn't sure why he was trying to pick a fight with Winter when all he wanted to do was apologize and take her back. But he was Qrow Branwen. He didn't go crawling back to someone just because he might care about them. "Just answer me this one question, Ice Queen." Qrow was silent for a moment as he thought. "Did you even care about me at all? Or was I just a….fuck buddy?"

"I could ask you the same thing, old man," Winter shot back, her breathing growing fast and heavy. "I tried to see you when I had a spare moment, but you were too damn busy with your own missions! It seems you only called me when you needed someone to warm your bed."

Qrow froze as she spoke, his thoughts coming to a startling realization.

She was right.

He remembered the messages he got from Winter, telling him she was home in Atlas for a few days if he wanted to come over. That she was near Signal, dropping off a shipment. Time and time again, she made an actual effort be with him but Qrow was too damn caught up with Ozpin and Salem and his own issues.

Qrow felt like a bastard and he was blaming Winter for all of his problems.

Letting go of her hands, he suddenly picked her up, threw her over his shoulder, and started walking towards the ocean. Winter made a sound of surprise and used her fists to hit his back, yelling at him to put her down this instant.

The cold ocean water hit Qrow's pants and soaked them as he waded in, finally dropping Winter with a loud splash when he was waist deep. She came up, water dripping from her hair and bikini, the cold causing her skin to break out in goosebumps.

"WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT FOR?!" she yelled, pushing her bangs out of her eyes.

"We both needed to cool off."

Winter got into Qrow's face, angry at him again. "You're the one who started this!"

"Me?" Qrow gave her a confused and innocent look. "I would never do such a thing."

With a loud cry, Winter launched herself at Qrow, pushing him backwards into the water, wishing she had her weapon on her. Without it, her weight and strength gave her a disadvantage, but she still had her speed. Luckily, the ocean current allowed her to topple him over, laughing as he fell back.

However, Winter's laugh was cut short when Qrow grabbed her arm, pulling her down with him.

A moment later, Qrow popped up out of the water with a gasp, grinning when Winter appeared a second later. "Have you cooled down yet, Ice Queen?"

Winter wiped the water from her eyes and was about to deliver a retort when she caught sight of Qrow standing a few feet away from her. His already form-fitting t-shirt was plastered to his torso, the lines of his muscles outlined by the wet fabric. His hair was tousled and pushed away from his face and she wanted to walk over to him and push that one piece off of his forehead just as she used to do.

 _Admit it Winter, you still want the man._

Instead, she turned and started to walk back to the shore, not bothering to see if Qrow was following her. She could feel his eyes on her, but she didn't look behind her, wanting to grab her towel and go back to her hotel room.

As soon as she reached her beach chair, Winter felt Qrow's hand on her shoulder gently turn her around. Reluctantly, she forced herself to look up at him, into his red eyes that looked...almost apologetic?

Winter wasn't sure who moved first, but the next thing she knew, Qrow had his hands on her waist and their lips crashed together, her arms wrapping around his neck. His lips tasted like salt water and her heart hammered in her chest as she kissed back, finding she had missed this, missed _him._

Eager hands grabbed at the hem of Qrow's shirt, and made an attempt to peel it off of him, only to find his torso was pressed against Winter's, thus hindering the process. Qrow broke the kiss, only to tilt his head down to run his tongue over a rivulet of water running down Winter's neck, lapping it up.

"Qrow...Qrow wait…" Winter groaned as she pushed at his shoulders. "The girls should be back soon."

Qrow let out a sound of frustration as he reluctantly tore himself away from Winter, taking a few deep breaths to calm his body down. "You're right. I'm sorry."

"I have a hotel room nearby," Winter told him as she leaned down to gather her things. "We can go there and talk some more."

Qrow doubted they would be doing much talking, but he knew they couldn't leave things hanging. Now was their chance to clear the air and discuss things through, figure out what they both wanted from this...

Relationship? Friends with benefits? He wasn't sure what to call it, but he knew he wanted more than "fuck buddies."

Running a hand through his hair, Qrow nodded, eager to be alone with Winter again. "Yeah, let's go."


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Sorry for the delay in this chapter and for the fact it's so short. Real life is getting to me right now and it's making it kind of hard to write. I hope to shake off this slight writer's block and resolve the crap that's on my mind soon, so bear with me. For now, enjoy chapter 3.

* * *

The walk back to Winter's hotel wasn't a long one, but her and Qrow were quiet as they made their way over the sand and to the path leading into town. There was a lot Winter wanted to say to him, yet she wasn't sure how to say it.

Qrow watched Winter's back as she led him through the small beach town, once again in awe of how she carried herself. She had the bearing of a soldier, yet she had the grace of a dancer. It always impressed him when he watched her fight, her lithe form taking down her foes with ease.

After walking for about ten minutes, Winter guided Qrow into a small, but nice hotel situated near the center of town. A quick elevator ride took them to the third floor and a moment later she was showing him into her room, closing the door behind her.

Winter hurried into the bathroom to grab a few towels for the, while Qrow made a beeline to the large window on the other side of the room. The view outside was lovely, with the setting sun casting an orange light over the small shops and buildings surrounding the hotel.

"Here." Qrow turned just in time to have a towel hit him square in the face. He glared at Winter as he pulled off his damp shirt and tossed it onto a nearby chair.

Winter tried not to stare as Qrow dried his hair, the muscles in his arms and torso tensing as he moved. The temptation to push him into the window seat behind him and have her way with him was tempting, but she kept her hormones under control. He had always been an attractive man, and she realized their time apart hadn't changed her feelings about him.

Removing the tie from her ponytail, Winter let her long hair down and started to dry it as well, using her fingers to tease out any knots and tangles. Her attention directed elsewhere, she didn't notice Qrow watching her intently.

"So, you wanted to talk?" Winter looked up and over to the man in front of the window, his arms crossed over his chest.

It took Winter a minute to gather her thoughts and figure out what she wanted to say. "...what do you want from this? You can't walk back into my life after six months and expect everything to be the same."

Qrow stared at the floor, unsure of what to tell her. What did he want? "I guess...I want to see you more. Not just chance meetings in a town we coincidentally happen to be in."

"If you're asking me to give up the military, the answer is no. I have a good career there and the opportunity to move upward."

"Well, I'm not giving up being a Huntsman."

The two stared at each other, both at a stalemate. Winter wasn't sure herself what she wanted out of this relationship. She supposed she wanted something similar to what Qrow wanted. Perhaps in the future there could be something more. But she was still young, and a lot could happen in five, even ten years.

Winter sighed, set her towel down, and perched on the edge of the bed. "I am not looking to settle down right now. But it seems we have two choices: we either continue to see each other for a few days every couple of months, or we wish each other well and part ways."

The second option was off the table for Qrow. That realization hit him hard, but he didn't let his feelings show on his face. Instead, he walked over to Winter and sat on the bed next to her. "We're here for the week. How about we just use it to see what happens and go from there?"

Winter thought about his proposal. She also didn't want to break up with him again, but she figured her first option was the best they could do for now. "All right. You may stay here in my room."

Qrow grinned and reached out to run a hand up her thigh. "I'm liking this plan already."

Winter gave him a level look, but didn't stop him from playing with the ties holding the bottom half of her bikini in place. "Perhaps you should get your belongings first?"

"Later." Qrow stood, leaned down, and kissed Winter, his hands planted on either side of her. Her fingers ran through his hair, and she enjoyed the feel of it in her hands. Despite it's appearance, it was thick and soft to the touch. She smirked against his mouth when she heard him groan, amused at how much he enjoyed having Winter play with his hair.

A minute later Winter pulled away and broke the kiss, then stood up, the move forcing Qrow to straighten up as well. "I don't know about you, but I am hungry and a shower is in order." She started to walk towards the bathroom, looked over her shoulder, and gave him a playful smile. Her hands reached behind her and she untied her bikini top, her arm then stretching to the side in order to drop it onto the floor as she stepped into the bathroom. "You are more than welcome to join me."

Well, Qrow didn't need to be asked twice. He nearly tripped over himself in his enthusiasm as he practically ran towards her, trying to shed his pants in the process. When he reached the bathroom, Winter already had the shower running and had just stepped inside. Qrow took a moment to admire her silhouette against the shower curtain before shoving it aside and climbing in to join her.


	4. Chapter 4

Qrow quickly discovered that shower sex was difficult.

Very difficult.

First he tried pinning Winter to the wall, but the combination of water and tile made it hard to keep her in place and she kept sliding down the wall. The whole situation amused Winter, but Qrow was growing more and more frustrated.

He then sat on the floor of the tub and pulled Winter into his lap, causing her to straddle him. It wasn't the best position, and Winter realized that the floor hurt her knees, making the whole process uncomfortable.

In the end, Qrow resorted to turning the shower off, picking up Winter while she was still dripping wet, and carrying her back into the room, dropping her onto the bed, soaking the quilt beneath her. Before she could complain about his manhandling, Qrow was inside of her, turning her grumbles into loud moans.

His thrusts were fast and rough, but Winter didn't care. There would be time for slow and sensual later. Six months felt like a long time for both of them, and all they cared about was being with each other. Her orgasm hit her almost instantaneously, Qrow following shortly after.

Qrow rolled off of Winter and rested his head on her shoulder, their breathing heavy. Winter was quiet for a few moments as she gathered her thoughts, then spoke, her voice soft.

"I take it you have made your decision?"

"I don't like being apart but…." As Qrow spoke, an arm reached over and rested on Winter's stomach. "I guess that's all we can do right now."

Before Winter could respond, a beeping sound cut through the air. Qrow groaned a bit and sat up, looking around for his pants. As she watched him search, Winter sat up as well, wrapping a sheet around herself. Finding them near the bathroom door, Qrow dug around through the pockets until he found his scroll.

"Hello?"

" _Uncle Qrow! Where did you go?"_

Qrow wandered back to the bed and sat down, smiling a bit when Winter shifted to lean against him. "I had something to take care of. What's up kid?"

" _Yang and I got worried when we came back and found you and Winter gone. Will we see you later?"_

Winter shrugged a bit in response to Qrow's questioning look and he went back to his call. "Probably not. Got a lot to do tonight. I'll see you guys tomorrow, okay?"

" _Maybe we can all train! You and Winter against Team RWBY!"_

"Sounds like a plan, kid. Bye." Qrow chuckled and hung up. "Guess we're training tomorrow."

"Good." Winter moved to kneel on the mattress behind him and started to kiss his neck. "They still have a lot to learn. But what's this about having a lot to do tonight? What exactly will you be doing?"

Qrow suddenly turned and pushed Winter back onto the bed, smirking at her surprised expression. "You."

Winter tipped her head back as Qrow pressed his lips against her neck and pulled the sheet away from her body. "I look forward to it."


End file.
